Animal Prints

Leopard, zebra, cheetah, crocodile...animal prints are a huge trend again this fall and winter. I've never really been into animal prints but I admire those who can rock the trend. More recently, I've been anxious to get my feet wet by incorporating some of these patterns into my wardrobe. There are a couple of things to keep in mind if you want to rock this look successfully:

1. Find a print that compliments your skin tone. If you're extremely pale, perhaps stark black and white zebra is not the way to go. If you're of a darker complexion, brown leopards or cheetah may not stand out enough. You can go bold with zebra and snakeskin.

2. Find the right size print. If you are full figured, look for smaller prints if you're doing a head-to-toe look or look for prints that are strategically placed in order to draw the eye upward (or wherever you want to highlight your best assets). If you have a smaller physique, go for larger, all over, prints.

3. Accents. If you're not very adventurous with your style or your apprehensive about trying animal prints, test the waters with some accent pieces first. Start slow with a purse, flats or earrings to see how you can work them into your existing outfits.

About 5 months ago I bought my first pair of cheetah print crop pants as my first step into the animal kingdom :-) I liked these because the print was small and in a darker tone. I also, went a little metaphoric and paired this look with lion-face earrings. The shirt is a simple mustard colored tee from H&M that picks up the subtle hints of orange in the pants. To finish the look, I added a matching mustard knit scarf, my fav metallic belt for texture and classic gray pumps. 

T-shirt: H&M, Pants: DeJanero (NYC), Metallic Belt: H&M, Scarf: H&M, Pumps: Nine West, Earrings: Essence of Beauty (essenceob.com),